Is drying laundry in the bedroom harmful or not?
If your balcony doesn’t provide a suitable place for drying your clothes on cold, rainy days, or if you don’t have a balcony at all, a small drying rack next to the bed is a welcome alternative. But, as harmless as it may sound, drying laundry in your bedroom can have a negative impact on both the indoor climate and your health. Why is this? Damp clothes release a great deal of moisture into the air when they dry, and this can have unwelcome consequences. Read on to learn how you can enjoy a healthy sleeping environment, even with freshly washed laundry hanging in the room with you.
by CALIDA
September 17, 2025•3 min reading time
Drying laundry in the bedroom: risk of damp, mold, and poor indoor air quality.
Table of Contents
The key points
Wet laundry increases humidity and, in turn, the risk of mould growth in the bedroom.
If there’s no other option, ensure the temperature in the room is at least 18°C and ventilate regularly.
There are a few tricks you can learn for hanging damp laundry up in your bedroom more safely – for example, by arranging your clothes correctly on the drying rack.
Using the bedroom to dry clothes isn’t always a good idea
Depending on the material and the spin cycle used, freshly washed laundry often contains several hundred millilitres of moisture. If you hang these wet fabrics up in your bedroom, over time this moisture will evaporate and end up in the air, causing the humidity to rise above the recommended 50 to 60%. This not only increases the risk of mould growth, but also means that your laundry will dry more slowly and, if you’re unlucky, will start to smell musty.
The situation can potentially be more critical during the colder seasons, as we open the windows less frequently due to the weather. This means that the moisture from the wet clothes stays inside, and the cooler air in the room is even less able to absorb it.
The moisture then settles on windows, walls and behind larger pieces of furniture, where mould spores can form over time, and these, in turn, can trigger respiratory problems or allergies that often go unnoticed, especially at night. Drying laundry in the bedroom is therefore particularly unsuitable for vulnerable individuals, children or people with asthma.
What can you do if you have no other option? How to dry laundry in the bedroom
Sometimes there’s no alternative – for example, if you don’t have a balcony, the laundry hanging in your living room gets in the way or there’s no heating in the bathroom. In such cases, the moisture must be removed from the room as quickly as possible.
Ensure low humidity by airing the room regularly
Airing the room is a must when drying laundry in your bedroom. Place the laundry rack as close to the window as possible and open the window at least three times a day for five to ten minutes to allow the damp air to escape. Create a through draught by opening a window on the other side of the room wide as well. Tilting the window or keeping it on summer lock isn’t enough!
Extra tip: As we also add to the humidity at night by sweating and breathing, you could easily dry your clothes in the bedroom during the day and move them to another room before you go to bed.
Don’t keep the room temperature too cool in winter
To ensure that the moisture in your laundry can actually be released into the air, you should maintain a bedroom temperature between 18°C and 20°C, even in winter, and even if you prefer to sleep in a cooler room. With breathable CALIDA sleepwear made from organic cotton or TENCEL™, you’ll stay at a comfortable temperature overnight without sweating.
Extra tip: If you want to avoid using a tumble dryer in winter, you may need to turn up the heating a little more often to keep the room at an ideal temperature. Just don’t forget to turn it down again when you air the room. This saves energy!
Hang laundry correctly for faster drying
The way you hang your laundry also affects how long both it and your bedroom remain damp. So, be sure to follow these tips:
Leave enough space between individual garments so air can circulate.
Alternate heavy textiles such as towels or jeans with lighter, thinner items.
Place the laundry rack close to the window or at a slight distance from the radiator so that the clothing dries faster.
Conclusion
Drying laundry in the bedroom isn’t necessarily harmful – but it can lead to an unhealthy indoor climate if the room temperature is too low and the room is rarely ventilated. And that, in turn, often affects our quality of sleep. With regular airing, a moderate room temperature and the correct placement of the drying rack in the bedroom, laundry will dry faster and the risk of mould appearing is reduced. Combined with high-quality pyjamas made from natural materials, you’ll ensure a comfortable sleeping environment and a restful night’s sleep, all year round.
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